A Letter from the Reverend Mr Abraham de la Pryme, to the Very Reverend Dr G. D. of Y. and F. R. S. concerning Some Roman Antiquities in Lincolnshire

IV. A Letter from the Reverend Mr Abraham dela Pryme, to the very Reverend Dr G. D. of Y. and F. R. S. concerning some Roman Antiquities in Lincolnshire. Very Reverend Sir, Having made bold in my last Letter to acquaint you with the Recent discovery of a Roman Pavement in Lincolnshire, so I could not (through the great love that I have unto Antiquity) any longer forbear going to take a view thereof than yesterday, which having performed, I shall here now, as I promised you, give you a larger account thereof than before I was able to do. But because that it is by a famous old Roman High-way, or Street (as it is commonly called) I will make bold to describe its course unto you as briefly as I can in the first place, because that no body hath done it before me, and because that the doing of the same illustrates this piece of Antiquity. I have observed many Roman ways in that County of Lincoln, but none more observable than this, called High-Street, which runs (if I mistake not) almost directly in a straight line from London to Humber-Side. This is that which is slightly mentioned by Mr Cambden (in New Ed. p. 470.) as running, says he, from Lincoln Northwards unto the little Village called Spit-tle in the Street, and somewhat further from this Spit-tle in the Street, and 'tis somewhat further. I shall continue tinue its course, and what I have observed worthy of note, about the same unto Humber aforesaid. It is not perhaps unworthy to note that this way is called all along by the Country people the High Street, and is so visible, that it is a great direction and guide to Strangers and Passengers. It is cast up on both sides with incredible Labour to great height, and discontinued in many places, and then begun again, and so on to Humber-side. I have observed that where it runs over nothing but bare Mould and plain Heath, that there it consists of nothing but Earth cast up, but where it comes to run through Woods, there it is not only raised with Earth, but also paved with great Stones set edge way, very close to one another, that the roots of the Trees that had been cut down to make way for the same, might not spring up again and blind the Road. Which paved Causey is yet very strong, firm, and visible in many places of this Street, where Woods are yet standing on both sides, as undoubtedly they were on the Roman times, else it had not been paved, and in other places it is paved where nothing of any Wood is now to be seen, tho undoubtedly there was when it was made. In one place I measured the breadth of the said paved Street, and I found it just seven yards broad English measure. This Street or Causey in its course full North as aforesaid, runs by the Fields of Hibberlow, [which perhaps signifies the place where the Danish General Hubbn was buried] in which Fields not far off this Street, is the foundations of many Roman Buildings, to be seen, as is manifest from their Tile there found, and Tradition says, that there hath been a City and Castle there, and there are two Springs, the one called Julian's Stony Well, and the other Castleton Well, and there are several old Roman Coins now and then found there. This might perhaps be be some little old Roman Town by their Highway side, and was perhaps in after times before that it was ruined called Castletown, or Casterdon, from its being built upon or by some of their Camps, that might then be in those Fields. About a mile further to the Northward on the West side of the said Street, upon a great Plain or Sheepwalk, there is very visible the foundations of another old Town, tho now there is neither House, Stone, Rubbish, Tree, Hedge, Fence, nor Close to be seen belonging thereto. I have counted the Vestigia of the Buildings, and found them to amount to about one hundred that are yet visible, and the number of the Streets or Lanes are 4 or 5, and not far from it Northward is a place called the Kirk-garth, where the Church is supposed to have stood that belonged to this Town. Tradition calls this place Gainstrop, and I do very well remember that I have read in the 2d Vol. of the Mon. Ang. of Lands and Tenements herein given unto Newsted Priory, not far off this place, in an Island in the River Ank, falsly called Ankham. About a mile or two hence the Street runs thro Scawby Wood, where it is all paved, and from thence close by Broughton Town end, by a Hill which I should take to be a Barrow, and that the Town had its name from it quasi Barrow Town, but that it seems to be too excessively great for one. However, I have found fragments of Roman Tiles and Bricks there [and millions of petrify'd Shell-fish, thousands of which I have broken to behold their Texture, and to see if I could find one within another, of which I shall in my next give you a large account.] From thence the Causey all along paved is continued about a mile further to the entrance upon Thornholme, more where there is a place by the Street called Brutton Graver, and a little East by Broughton Wood side, is a Spring that I discovered some years ago that turns Moss into Stone; and not far further stands the ruins of the stately Priory of Thornholm, built by King Stephen. Opposite to this Priory, about a quarter of a mile on the West-side of the Street, is a place called Santon, from the flying Sands there, which have over-run and ruin'd above a hundred Acres of Land. Amongst which Sands was in antient time a great Roman Pottery, as the Learned Dr Lister shews in the Transact. from the Reliques of the ruinous Furnaces, and the many fragments of Roman Urns and Pots yet to be met with. I have also found there several Roman Coins, and Mr B. of A. found a great piece of Brass in the bottom of one of the Furnaces like a Cross, which perhaps was part of a Grate, to set some Pots on while they were baking or drying. Returning back to the Street, there are several Sand-hills, somewhat like Barrows thereby, on the top of one of which was erected a great flat Stone, now so far sunk in the earth that there is not above a foot of it to be seen; but I could observe no Inscription thereon, tho undoubtedly it was not set there for nothing. Entring then into Appleby-lane, the Street leads thro the West end of the Town, at which Town is two old Roman Games yet practis'd, (tho very imperfectly) the one call'd Julian's Bower, and the other Troy's Walls. From hence the street runs strait on, leaving Roxby, (a little Town half a mile on the West, where the Roman Pavement is discover'd, that I shall immediately describe,) and Winterton, a pretty neat Town (where the worthy Families of the Places and Nevils inhabit, promoters and encouragers of every thing that is good. And And then about 3 or 4 miles further, leaving Wintringham about half a mile to the West, the said Street falls into Humber, and there ends; at which end has been a Town call'd Old Wintringham, and a sort of a Beach for Ships. All this end of the Country, on the West side of this Street, hath been full of Romans in old time, as may be gather'd from their Moneys, Coyns, and the many Tiles and Bricks that are commonly here found, especially at a Cliff called Winterton Cliff, where has been some old Roman Buildings; and further about two miles more Westward is Alkburrow, which seems to have been a Roman Town not only from its name, but also from a small four-square Camp or Entrenchment there, on the West side of which is a Barrow call'd Countess Barrow, or Countess Pit, to this day, sunk hollow in the middle. Having thus given you an Idea of this part of the Country, and how and wherabouts this Town of Roxby stands, where this Roman Pavement is discover'd, I shall now proceed to give you an account thereof, as I took it upon the place at my being there. Mr Place and Mr Nevil, the two Winterton Gentlemen, going with me thither, we found that the Close or Garth where this piece of Antiquity is discover'd, is in the Town aforesaid, on the South West of the Church, the Lord of the Soyl is Mr Elwars, a South Country Gentleman, the Tenants Name is Tho. Smith; the occasion of its discovery was his digging to repair a fence between this Close and another; which as soon as he had discover'd he bared a little thereof, it lying about a foot and a half in the ground; and digging in many places found it to be about 6 or 7 yards broad, and as many long, if not more; but he being not at all curious thereof, the School-boys went and pull'd several curious figures in pieces that he had bared, which were set in Circles. Having got a Spade, Shovel and Beesom, we fell to work, and with a great deal of labour (the ground being very hard) bared about a yard and a half square, in baring of which we cast up many pieces of Roman Tile, the bone of an hinder leg of an Ox or Cow, broken in two, and many pieces of Plaster painted red and yellow, which seem'd to have been the Cornish at the foot of some Altar, or else perhaps of some part of the Building; and we observed that several great Stones in their falling (when the building over this pavement was destroy'd) had broken and lodged themselves in the Pavement, and there lay until we removed them. Then having swept the space aforesaid that we had bared very clean, the Pavement looked exceeding beautiful and pretty, and one would not imagine, had one not seen them, that such mean Stones could make such pretty work; for they are nothing but small four square bits of Brick, Slate and Cauk, set in curious figures and order, and are only of three colours, red, blue and white; specimens of all which I have sent by the bearer. Of which there is one as long again as any of the rest, of which many whole rows, red, blue and white consisted, on the outsides of the smaller work: The material that these small Stones is set in is a floor of Lime and Sand, and not Plaister: Which floor is so rotten and decay'd with time, that one may easily dig up the little Stones, &c. The whole Pavement consists of Circles, and Quadrangular, and many uneven figures, with rows of the aforesaid Stones, red, blue and white: in some of which Circles and Figures was Urns, in others Flowers, in others Interchangeable Knots, according as the Work-man pleased, a draught of which I then took upon upon the place, but because I do not find that it is so fine as some in Cambden, or Ciampini, that has lately writ upon this subject, I will not trouble you therewith. When we had beheld as much of it as time would give us leave, we cover'd it all up again, and there it remains unto this very time; and at present the Close in which it is, is sown with Line. I am Hull. Aug. 2. 1700. Your Humble Servant, Abr. de la Pryme. Reader of Trin. Church. V. An Account of Books, viz. I. Petri Chirai, Consularii, Medici & Professoris Regii Monspeliensis de Motu Cordis Adversaria Analytica. Monsp. 1698 in 12. The Author of this discourse endevours to deliver an entire system of the motion of the Heart and its Causes in an Analytick Method, advancing each Position in the Order, the mind arrives at the knowledge of it. He divides this subject into three distinct Enquiries. 1. What is the Cause of the Contraction of the Heart? 2. What is the Cause of its Dilatation? 3. Why the motion of the Ventricle and Auricles are not contemporary, but alternate? Since